Daily Archives: May 11, 2011

Chinese internet IPOs: Icarus syndrome

May 11, 2011 6:50 pm by Kathrin Hille

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A week ago, management of Renren (RENN:NYQ), the Chinese social networking site, and their bankers must have breathed a sigh of relief: Despite many questions over the company’s valuation and its accounting practices, Renren had priced its IPO at the top of the range, and its shares jumped close to 30 per cent on the first day of trading.

But the party is over now. By early afternoon in New York on Wednesday, Renren had crashed back to US$13.18 per ADS – slightly up from a session low of $13.04 and well below its IPO price of US$14. To many who have been warning of a Chinese internet bubble, this weak performance is proof that the bubble is about to burst. Continue reading »

Tags: China tech, internet, IPOs Posted in China | Permalink

Deal of the day: HNA of China buys Spain’s NH Hoteles

May 11, 2011 5:19 pm by beyondbrics

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By Samuel Wang and Paul Francis-Grey of mergermarket

Having bought up to €6bn’s worth of Spanish debt and reportedly vowing to continue investing in the country, China has seemingly become an important financial crutch to the troubled Spanish economy.

So Tuesday’s announcement that China’s HNA Group would buy 20 per cent of Spain’s NH Hoteles comes as no surprise. Yet HNA may be just as interested in acquiring skills to apply at home as it is in buying a share of the Spanish market. Continue reading »

Tags: FDI, M&A, mergermarket Posted in Asia, China | Permalink

Oil: Kazakhs fear China at the gate

May 11, 2011 5:00 pm by Isabel Gorst

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The opposition in Kazakhstan is known for political apathy, but one thing that really winds it up is China’s growing influence in the oil-rich central Asian country, which it sees as a threat to national security.

Tensions rose to a head this week as Azat, Kazakhstan’s leading opposition party, said it would stage a rally in protest of the growing influence of Chinese oil companies that now control more than one fifth of Kazakh oil production. Continue reading »

Tags: FDI, oil & gas Posted in Kazakhstan | Permalink

India’s litmus test for privatisation

May 11, 2011 4:30 pm by James Fontanella-Khan

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India’s Power Finance Corporation is failing to attract much interest in its $1bn follow-on share sale, in a sign that investors have little appetite for for state-owned companies.

The 10 per cent share sale of PFC, a lender for power projects, is the first disinvestment made by the Indian government this fiscal year and follows last year’s successful listing of Coal India, which raised a record $3.5bn in the country biggest initial public offering. Continue reading »

Posted in India | Permalink

Coach: man bags for China

May 11, 2011 3:45 pm by Alexandra Stevenson

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In the luxury goods business it’s all about brand recognition – and that often means cultivating shareholders and customers at the same time. That’s the thinking behind Coach‘s announcement that it will list its shares in Hong Kong later this year, following in the footsteps of Vale, the Brazilian mining giant.

Like Vale, however – and unlike Prada’s planned Hong Kong IPO and last year’s L’Occitane – Coach doesn’t plan to raise any new capital, which raises the question: is this publicity stunt worth the money and the effort? Continue reading »

Tags: consumption, luxury Posted in China | Permalink

Poland: surprise rate hike

May 11, 2011 3:27 pm by Stefan Wagstyl

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A surprise rate hike from Poland on Wednesday shows that, despite the recent sell-off in commodities, the central bank remains worried about inflation risks.

The National Bank of Poland raised its key interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point to 4.25 percent, defying forecasts that it would leave things unchanged. Investors marked up the zloty by around 0.8 per cent against the euro but otherwise took the news in their stride and the zloty later fell back to trade up 0.5 per cent. Continue reading »

Tags: inflation, monetary policy Posted in Poland | Permalink

Diageo parties in Brazil

May 11, 2011 2:52 pm by beyondbrics

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By Andrew Downie in São Paulo

No one parties like the Brazilians and no one drinks like the Scots. So Diageo’s Whisky Festival, a six-week jamboree bringing Scottish music and cuisine to five Brazilian cities, seems like the perfect match.

The concept is a novel one for Diageo and is designed to increase the reach of its Johnnie Walker brands in what is its fourth biggest global market for Black Label and its biggest for Red Label, its cheaper and more commercial alternative. Continue reading »

Tags: consumption, Diageo, food & drink, marketing, media Posted in Brazil, LatAm | Permalink

Russian Helicopters: hard landing

May 11, 2011 12:14 pm by Stefan Wagstyl

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Another Russian London IPO has flown into trouble – state-controlled Russian Helicopters on Wednesday cancelled its planned $500 million offering.

Once again the controlling shareholder – in this case the Russian government – sought too high a price. The offering wasn’t ultra-expensive in valuation terms, but some investors were wary of co-investing with the state and others may have been hit by the recent sell-off in emerging markets and a desire to set aside funds for the huge Glencore IPO. Continue reading »

Tags: defence, IPOs Posted in Russia | Permalink

New York headlines

May 11, 2011 12:02 pm by beyondbrics

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* China inflation edges lower to 5.3%

* Geithner hails ‘progress’ in China talks

* China and Russia impose export restrictions on petrol

* US recognizes India’s need for Iranian oil

* Decision on Cairn-Vedanta deal delayed by a week

* BP gets final approval to buy Brazilian oilfields Continue reading »

Posted in Global | Permalink

HSBC: strategic EMs and the rest

May 11, 2011 10:43 am by Stefan Wagstyl

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HSBC’s strategic review, published on Wednesday, is a telling comment of how Europe’s biggest bank views emerging markets.

Out go earlier plans to expand retail banking services in some smaller countries, notably Poland. In comes a sharper focus on serving the largest and most dynamic economies and “limiting” retail banking to markets “where we can achieve profitable scale”. Continue reading »

Tags: banking Posted in Global | Permalink

Guest post: China’s inflation and trade data suggest policy is on track

May 11, 2011 6:00 am by beyondbrics

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By Shuang Ding at Citi

China’s April data indicate that monetary tightening is on track and output growth is moderating, with industrial production growth coming in lower than expected at 13.4 per cent. CPI inflation remained elevated at 5.3 per cent, despite sharp seasonal decline in vegetable prices and government price interventions. Continue reading »

Tags: China inflation, guest post, inflation, renminbi, trade Posted in China | Permalink

London headlines

May 11, 2011 5:56 am by beyondbrics

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* Geithner hails ‘progress’ in China talks

* China and Russia impose export restrictions on petrol

* US recognizes India’s need for Iranian oil

* Decision on Cairn-Vedanta deal delayed by a week

* US under pressure to fill rare earths gap Continue reading »

Posted in Global | Permalink

Telecom Italia focuses on Argentina

May 11, 2011 3:20 am by Jude Webber

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For companies to come to Latin America and say the focus is on Brazil is nothing new. But fewer companies profess the same devotion to Argentina, where inflation is a serious problem and businessmen often complain of snap changes in the rules of the game.

But Franco Bernabè, executive president of Telecom Italia, says he has no plans to focus on any other markets in Latin America for now. Continue reading »

Tags: telecoms Posted in Argentina | Permalink

[snap] China inflation at 5.3 per cent

May 11, 2011 3:14 am by Josh Noble

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Chinese CPI remained sticky in April – though edged down a touch to 5.3 per cent from 5.4 in the previous month. Economists had been looking for a 5.2 per cent figure.

The Shanghai stock market was virtually flat both ahead of, and after, the news.

Posted in China | Permalink

beyondbrics

Daily Archives: May 11, 2011

Chinese internet IPOs: Icarus syndrome

Deal of the day: HNA of China buys Spain’s NH Hoteles

Oil: Kazakhs fear China at the gate

India’s litmus test for privatisation

Coach: man bags for China

Poland: surprise rate hike

Diageo parties in Brazil

Russian Helicopters: hard landing

New York headlines

HSBC: strategic EMs and the rest

Further reading: China’s sharper focus

Guest post: China’s inflation and trade data suggest policy is on track

London headlines

Telecom Italia focuses on Argentina

[snap] China inflation at 5.3 per cent

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